The Great Organ is Back!

[@williamfredscott6904]

Your enthusiasm is contagious! I'm smiling at the thought of hearing that magnificent beast at full throttle once again. I played it once with Alec Wyton -- a long time ago! Thanks for your nice video.

[@samschaeffer8236]

I hope that your recital in February is going to be on KZbin. Looking forward to it. I hope all of the organ's voices are back by then. The situation at the west end my take more time, though. The Solo Tuba is a stupendous stop, and is quite able to be the supreme voice on this organ, when the State Trumpet is not in use. It's very nice to hear individual stops demonstrated, such as you did in this video. Thank you.

[@matthewprovost5938]

I'm enjoying you as much as the I'm enjoying the organ - THANK YOU !

[@DanielFicarri]

@@matthewprovost5938 Very kind! Thank you!

[@Jcarolinajr]

A very big thank you for sharing your time and talents. This great instrument blooms beautifully under your marvelous music and caress. Your playing instills uplift and majesty increasing wonder and worship and belief. May God bless you and your sacred work. Thank you again!

[@DanielFicarri]

Thank you for your kind words!

[@johnaromeri4337]

Thanks for this FABULOUS demo Danny! You are amazing. So great to have this treasure back!

[@DanielFicarri]

Thanks so much, John! We’re thrilled that the organ is back. Wishing you a happy (and sane) Christmas season!

[@johnaromeri4337]

@@DanielFicarri Same to you by friend!

[@matthieubazile3350]

Wow! The organ sounds amazing. Thank you so much for this wonderful demonstration!

[@DanielFicarri]

Thank you! It's really an amazing instrument.

[@stephenregan5688]

Thanks Daniel. It's always a joy to hear individual stops. So glad the instrument is almost back to 100%.

[@derekwarren4563]

I hope the state trumpet can be fully restored!

[@organbuilder272]

Danial, I am impressed. Not only have you done a nice job of demonstrating the organ, the incredible reverb in that building but you are able to play without sheet music. The sign of an old school organist. Well Done, Sir. It is so rewarding to see someone who can play music, and not just puch keys. Wonderful demonstration. I am certain you are enxious to have the entire organ playing.

[@DanielFicarri]

Thank you! Yes, I am eager to share the rest of the instrument! 🙂

[@EElgar1857]

It's so wonderful to see the organ back. I don't live in NYC anymore, but will be planning a trip, to come and hear you!

[@DanielFicarri]

Come visit anytime!

[@chrisholley2954]

Those reeds DAMN IT those reeds , they proclaim wonderfully.

[@habakkuk76]

Thank you for that wonderful demo; it's all very exciting to have 150A back in action. Like the (unbelievably) restored organ at Notre Dame de Paris, it will probably have never sounded better when all the work is complete.

[@DanielFicarri]

Thank you! And yes, it's wonderful to have the instrument in such good condition.

[@quintoncorwin5474]

Beautiful! Thank you Daniel! :)

[@francois7]

What an amazing pipe organ ! Thank you for sharing with us its sounds ! 😀

[@geraldkvortek3279]

This is probably my favorite organ in the world due to the reverberation time.

[@pavlos7409]

Thanks for a wonderful demo Dan.

[@bombarde1701a]

I think this presents a fantastic opportunity to do a “dueling organs” program or recording featuring both the Walker and the Aeolian Skinner! Inagine?!

[@JW1_1]

And given the date, it’s also a fantastic opportunity for a Christmas Carol!😉🎄

[@michaelwhytock]

Wonderful! Would love to hear it in person. Greetings from London UK

[@DanielFicarri]

@@michaelwhytock Thank you! I hope you can experience it in person sometime!

[@ricktomlinson5481]

Take the train west from London to New York once in NY take the subway to church! PS that organ is a gem!

[@dennisadrianmiddendorp4013]

Wonderful demo. As others have said, it was great to demonstrate the organ by playing music, instead of the usual "waffling". The instrument sounds hugely impressive, especially in that building. I visited NYC in DEC '73 and was fortunate to meet Fred Swann @ Riverside church and hear the organ. I dropped in to St. John's too but no one was playing there. I live in Australia.

[@DanielFicarri]

Thank you! I hope you can hear it in person some day!

[@stepps511]

Thank you, Daniel! Your enthusiasm brings this instrument alive. Best to you for a Happy Holiday season, and a magical future at the console. Bravo!

[@DanielFicarri]

@@stepps511 Thank you! Happy holidays to you, too!

[@rensswart7248]

Hi Daniel! It is a joy to see you so happy and enthusiastic demonstrating this marvellous organ! The rich palette of colours and characters is very convincing. All those strings, all different, all very refined and well tuned. I am afraid I never visited the USA but I would love to get a thorough impression of the organ one day. And the building by the way. Best regards, Rens from the Netherlands

[@DanielFicarri]

Thanks for your kind comment! I also hope you can experience the instrument and space in person some day!

[@jonathankleefield5520]

Absolutely wonderful demonstration of one of America’s finest instruments. Being a Bostonian, we are also blessed with a number of Mr. Skinner’s incredible musical masterpieces here, as well. I trust you will provide us with more material to showcase your considerable musical talents, and it’s my hope to come and visit you in the near future. Happiest of holidays to you.

[@DanielFicarri]

Thank you, and happy holidays to you, too! Yes, we will do everything we can do make sure this instrument is heard well and often! Come visit us anytime.

[@EElgar1857]

Well, we've always been lucky that money was limited, when the organ was rebuilt by Aeolian-Skinner. If G D. Harrison had had his way, there would be very little left of Ernest Skinner's work.

[@RichardHarrold1991]

@@EElgar1857 Don Harrison had great respect for the best of Skinner's work, he just corrected its deficiencies.

[@russelljosephweismann6303]

Thanks Dan! Sounds great

[@DanielFicarri]

@@russelljosephweismann6303 Thank you!

[@denwuj]

I recall being there June 2011 for AAM, Dorothy Papadakos, organist. Thanks ever so much for the musical tour. I am hoping for an encore mooosical tour all the better to hear you. I hope you get a better "tv monitor" which looks like the the one one of your predecessors used. It's also got to be a challenge with you up in the heavens and the choir on terra firma. I always love your improvisations and use them as an "online" tutorial. Bestestissimo during Advent and the time to come.

[@DanielFicarri]

Very cool! And yes, I hope to share more of the instrument in the coming weeks and months. Our humble monitor is certainly outdated, but it still gets the job done! 😉 A happy Advent to you, too.

[@manxmusician]

Sounds great. Surprised it’s not a 5 manual instrument in such a large building.

[@socialite1283]

The speakers on my computer only go down to around 60Hz. So that's 2 octaves missing from what I'm hearing. I have a good idea what it would have sounded like with speakers that could do the lower two octaves justice. Lovely sounding stops. Very smooth gradations. Sounds like it is a very satisfying instrument to play.

[@scottnyc6572]

It should be noted the volume on this video comes in extremely low.As a result the volume on whatever device you’re listening on requires it to be turned up almost to its maximum.I was a bit apprehensive about doing this at first in case the glitch corrected itself.Thank you

[@SeattleBoatdog]

Oh, this is fantastic! I was literally just a couple of days ago, wondering what the status was on the reinstallation

[@RichardHarrold1991]

Great and Swell to see it back! Is the Walker toaster staying in the nave? It seemed to be pretty useful. Might be worth having the option to couple it to the real organ for accompanying hymnody...

[@johnswindells1969]

Amazing. The only downside is that can any of your Christmas presents beat having the organ back?😊

[@parisoncourt]

I knew the chorale would come in sonner than later

[@DanielFicarri]

Couldn't resist!

[@michaelw6554]

Lovely demo, thank you for posting these updates about the organ. Was the original instrument built by E. M. Skinner?

[@DanielFicarri]

Thank you! Yes - it was originally built by Ernest M. Skinner Company in 1910, then rebuilt and enlarged by Aeolian-Skinner in 1954.

[@lysliepope3967]

In my opinion, this i Aeolian-Skinner is J Donald Harrison's masterpiece in organ building.

[@DanielFicarri]

I agree!

[@jgesselberty]

Sadly, the sound on the video is so low, I can hardly hear you.

[@stephenkolarac5305]

Can't hear you at all

[@bombarde1701a]

Did you retire the Walker?

[@DanielFicarri]

We hope the Walker organ will soon move to Synod Hall, an alternate worship space on the campus where there is currently no playable instrument. Synod does have a 1913 E. M. Skinner organ, but unfortunately it needs a full restoration.

[@RichardHarrold1991]

@@DanielFicarri I'd have thought the Walker too useful in the nave to lose. 150A never got down the nave all that well, from what I'm told, so having sound there to support congregational singing would be most valuable, even if controlled from 150A's console. The Synod Hall Skinner is basically a half-decent Swell plus a handful of other ranks giving the illusion of a three-manual organ, really needs a radical rethink and enlargement to give it new independent departments.

[@DanielFicarri]

@RichardHarrold1991 Thanks for your comment! The Great Organ was actually designed to have a Nave division, and the current console is already set up for it. If funds became available to complete that division, it really would be wonderful! But thankfully, the sound of the instrument does reach the Nave fairly well!

[@RichardHarrold1991]

@@DanielFicarri how hard would it be to slave the Walker to the A-S?

[@louise_rose]

Lovely organ with great sound - the video would be improved though if we could hear you better when you're talking! You might like to get a small "clip mic" (the kind that newsreaders on TV often use, set close to the collar or the like) to make your voice come through better, it's really faint here. :)

[@bertspeggly4428]

This is an interesting video but the volume of your voice is much too low. The organ sounds excellent.

[@markfortuin7111]

Can’t hear your voice at all. Can that be fixed? A number of similar comments further down.

[@BeaconCampana]

Thank you so much! I am counting over 5 seconds of reverb... that organ just fills the cathedral space so well! Can't wait for the west wall to be repaired and get those state trumpets back... Easter?

[@DanielFicarri]

The reverb is quite a thrill (something like 9-10 seconds)! Funds are limited, and so I imagine it will be some time before the State Trumpet can return, unless a sizable donation is made towards that work.

[@RichardHarrold1991]

@@DanielFicarri what about the Skinner 32' Bombarde/Ophicleide, is that back or coming back?

[@DanielFicarri]

@RichardHarrold1991 The 32' Ophicleide pipes are in the chamber, but it would be extremely expensive to do the work needed for the pipes to be tunable and reactivated, unfortunately.

[@RichardHarrold1991]

@@DanielFicarri what's the problem? Surely having the organ out was the opportunity to do something about it?

[@williamfredscott6904]

Your enthusiasm is contagious! I'm smiling at the thought of hearing that magnificent beast at full throttle once again. I played it once with Alec Wyton -- a long time ago! Thanks for your nice video.